Guarantors want cleric’s property sold to recover Sh5.8 million sacco loan
The church elder borrowed various loans from Sheria Sacco in 2018 amounting to Sh5.8 million.
What you need to know:
- Fifteen people who stood as guarantors for a church elder’s Sacco loan want to auction his household items.
- The church elder borrowed various loans from Sheria Sacco in 2018 amounting to Sh5.8 million.
Fifteen people who stood as guarantors for a church elder to obtain a loan Sh5.8 million from a savings and credit organisation before he defaulted have opposed an application by the cleric seeking to block the auctioning of his household items.
The 15 said Mr David Nderitu Ndumo misled the Co-operative Tribunal into obtaining the order, blocking the sale of the goods that were seized for sale, to recover their money.
Mr Ndumo was recently elected the honorary treasurer of the Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA).
He obtained an order from the Tribunal last month, stopping the sale of the items after 15 members of Sheria Sacco engaged Wright Auctioneers to attach his assets, to recover their money after being forced to repay his loans.
“That from the onset, I wish to state that the applicant has not advanced compelling reasons to warrant the setting aside of the judgement and the consequential orders,” the guarantors through lawyer Wambugu Wanjohi submitted.
The 15 guarantors including Juma Olago, Charles Maina, Jane Njoroge and Benjamin Ombogo want the Tribunal to dismiss the application and allow the auctioneer to sell the seized items.
The auctioneers raided Mr Ndumo’s home in Marurui estate and items including electronics, furniture and cars for seizure, which are to be sold to recover the loan deducted from the guarantors.
Mr Ndumo wants the Tribunal to set aside its decision made on August 3, last year directing him to pay Sh5.8 million plus costs of the suit. The amount has since risen to more than Sh7 million.
He informed the Tribunal that he was never served with the application and was unaware of the claim.
Mr Ndumo further said he has a constitutional right to a fair hearing or representation and that he only became aware of the claim and the judgment when he was served with warrants of attachment by Wright Auctioneers on February 14, 2024.
But Mr Wanjohi submitted that Mr Ndumo was served with court documents on two occasions but never bothered to file any documents or participate in the proceedings.
The lawyer further said the cleric has moved to the Tribunal more than four years later and should therefore, not be rewarded for his indolence.
According to Mr Wanjohi, Mr Ndumo only moved to the tribunal when the guarantors decided to execute the judgment and decree.
He said the claim was filed in 2019 under certificate of urgency and that he was served with the order on January 15, 2020 in Nyeri town, where he worked at the county government offices. He accepted the service by signing on the principal copies and an affidavit of service, he said attaching evidence to the application.
“The applicant is therefore, estopped from denying that they were ever served and this application only serves as a tactic to delay the realisation of the claimant’s fruits of their judgement,” he said.
The 15 guarantors sued Mr Ndumo on November 28, 2019 stating that he borrowed various loans from Sheria Sacco between March 14 and August 7, 2018 amounting to Sh5.8 million.
He failed to service the loan despite several demands, forcing the guarantors to repay the money.
